HNC Photography, IFC - Coursework, Introduction to Film Culture Blog, Part one - Heroes & Villians "re-made", Project 5 - Where the Magic Happens
Exercise 1.5
Where the magic happens
Editing as the title of this exercise alludes to, is what brings a movie together; it stitches the individual shots within a scene together, as well as the stitching the scenes themselves together to create a coherent narrative.
Here we have three versions of effectively the same film, and when looking at their editing styles are very similar between the two older films, “Yojimbo” and “Fistful of Dollars”. “Last Man Standing” pays homage to the earlier films in the movement between scenes the style in which it was done is very different.
It seems wrong to compare them this way because Yojimbo came before the Spaghetti Western but there is a feeling of a Spaghetti Western in Yojimbo. I think I feel this way because I have come to Yojimbo later in my film-watching life. The mixture of wide to close up shots, how in the open sequences the edits allow the viewer to observe the unfolding scene from the protagonist’s point of view, switching back to medium/close shots of the actor to show reactions and emotions. The fact that the openings of these two films are almost wordless except for background chatter is significant to my enjoyment.
“Last Man Standing” on the other hand does not just use simple cuts between shots to set the scene and drive the narrative; there are fades between shots, overlays and mixes between the scenes – feel I am watching a film inspired more by a music video than Akia Kurosawa. And the ill-advised voice over commentary to tell me what is being thought, without allowing me to interpret from the how the scene is being acted.
In the final duel of Fistful of Dollar, the edits added drama to the use of to extreme close up on the eyes, the close-up detail shots of the loading of guns and switch back from these to longer shots the few has no doubt in what is happening – if slightly melodramatic.
While similar to Fistful the showdown in Yojimbo is less exaggerated. The opponents walk straight towards each other, but this is not shown as a side or wide view, there are switches from one to the other. With each switch, the shot is tightened from wide to long to medium giving the audience the sense how the opponents are getting closer. However, the sword and knife fights, while beautiful choreographed, that leads to does not have the same strength as the gunfight in Fistful.
Finally in “Last Man Standing” the showdown is edited in just a way that moves the viewer’s sight of the action, it flows but in a common way; very much like the overall feeling of the film. It doesn’t add to the drama nor to take away it is just vanilla.